Crimson clues

A shot rang out and claimed Connie's life, but is A.J. truly the killer or is it a case of shortsightedness? Liz Masters follows the clues and takes a look at the bigger picture in this week's Two Scoops.

Okay, folks, say you find your loved one on the floor, bleeding from a serious gunshot wound. What do you do?

A) Run over, make sure they are alive, apply pressure to the wound, and call 9-1-1B) Run over, make sure they are alive, have a long protracted conversation about how much you love them, without applying any first aid whatsoever, and then call 9-1-1

I'm fairly certain that most of you answered A. If you answered B, then welcome to my column, Sonny. I love you, Babe, but you suck in a crisis, which I find surprising, given how many times you've had to deal with gunshot wounds.

Recently, I received an email wondering why I had criticized Sonny for not making any sacrifices for his loved ones over the years. I was reminded that it was the women in his life who had freely entered into a relationship with him, knowing full well what kind of life he lived. It's a valid argument. Lily, Brenda, Carly, Alexis, Sam, Hannah, Reese, Emily, Claudia, Olivia, and yes, even Connie, all embarked on a relationship with Sonny, knowing that he was a violent criminal who did very bad things. But they were willing to take the risk because they loved him. He was their "Squishy."

However, I contend that a relationship is a partnership. Each person gives and takes. I see Sonny taking far more than I see him giving. That has been true with each of his relationships, romantic and otherwise.

Dante, Michael, Kristina, and Morgan were made a part of Sonny's world without being offered a choice. Yes, their mothers are partly to blame, but that doesn't make Sonny's responsibility to them any less important. Sure, they are old enough to walk away from Sonny's life now, but they will still be his children and, as such, appealing to his enemies. It's because of his children that I expect Sonny to do better. To try harder. To be less violent.

I love Sonny. I always try to root for him, but I'm a parent, too, and sometimes I'm reminded of what a selfish man Sonny is under all that good-looking, seductive charm he oozes with the flash of that sinful smile and glimpse of those sexy dimples.

I understood why Sonny was mad at Connie for printing the article, but I hated that he couldn't understand that he should have never asked Connie to sacrifice her career, just like Morgan should have never asked Sonny to betray Michael. Remember, Michael wasn't just lusting after his brother's girlfriend, he thought that he was lusting after his cousin. This is a guy who struggled after a violent sexual assault in prison, so to let him think he was having incestuous feelings seems particularly cruel.

Rule number one in parenthood is to protect your children. All of your children, but Sonny didn't do that. He failed Michael, and in a way, he failed Morgan too.

Back to Connie; she went through so much pain and heartache to be with Sonny that the very least that she deserved from him was his forgiveness. He gave it to her, but it felt like it was just a tad too little too late. Especially since Connie's last act, before A.J. had drunkenly stumbled into the office, had been to try to call Sonny to warn him that Derek Wells might be Julian Jerome. Meanwhile, Sonny and Olivia were having another one of their "Oh, I know you," "No, I know youuu," conversations in an elevator. I liked Kate/Connie/ConKate, so I wanted her to have a little bit of a happily-ever-after with Sonny.

Olivia's reaction to the shooting was gut-wrenching, particularly when it hit her that the very last conversation that she'd had with Connie had been an argument. I really felt bad for Olivia because I know what it's like to lose a loved one. The pain may fade, but it never leaves. I'm certain that Olivia will eventually realize that Connie had loved Olivia, and that no matter what else, Connie had died knowing that Olivia had returned that love.

If not, perhaps Molly and Rafe can loan Olivia their trusty Ouija board.

I think Sonny will have a harder time moving past Connie's death than Olivia because at some point, it's going to be revealed that A.J. didn't pull the trigger; one of Sonny's mob enemies did. I'm certain that the real shooter is Ava Jerome, not A.J., and here is why.

My theory is that Ava either showed up while A.J was ranting at and threatening Connie, or she arrived as A.J. left. Either way, Ava got there, likely had her own confrontation with Connie about Kiki, during which Connie let it slip that she knew Derek Wells was Julian Jerome. Ava has tried to take care of her problems with a gun before, so she's certainly capable of shooting Connie in cold blood. I don't know if A.J. had left the gun behind or Ava had brought her own to the party, but there's no doubt in my mind she's the killer.

Ava's initials are AJ, she had motive -- keeping Connie quiet about Julian and payback for the story -- opportunity, and the means. It's also important to note that Morgan found the gun outside of the boathouse shortly after a visit from Ava.

I hate that A.J. is unraveling, but I'm absolutely riveted by the scenes. Sean Kanan is giving us some really powerful performances, and I wouldn't be surprised if they end up on an Emmy reel. His scenes with Liz at the Floating Rib when he dared to throw Jake in her face, his explosive encounters with Connie, and then the volatile confrontation with Sonny were downright intense.

Maurice Benard was equally phenomenal in his rage. That scene when Sonny held a gun to the back of A.J.'s neck gave me chills because Sonny's anger and grief were palpable.

I can't blame Sonny for thinking that A.J. shot Connie. He asked Connie who shot her before he dashed to the phone, so she answered him in the only way that she could. Unfortunately, in writing "AJ" in blood, she pointed everyone in the wrong direction.

Too bad Anna and Dante are suffering from a severe case of shortsightedness because they should know by now that things are not always as they seem.

The person who annoyed me the most this week was Dante, not just because he suddenly remembered that Connie was family, but because he was such a complete ass. I loved it when A.J. questioned why Dante was even on the case, given Dante's relationship to the victim. Too bad Anna sounded like an idiot when she suggested that Dante stopping Sonny from killing A.J. justified Dante being on the case. I love Anna, but someone should have handed her a Snickers candy bar.

It looks like Ellie had very good reason to fear that Spinelli would dump her the minute he learned that he was the father of Maxie's baby. Maxie betrayed him in the worst way imaginable, yet most of his anger was directed at Ellie because she told him the truth later rather than sooner.

After Spinelli ranted at Ellie, ended their relationship, and then ignored her, he proceeded to skulk about the corridors of the hospital, alternating between gazing adoringly at his daughter through the neonatal nursery window and lurking outside of Maxie's hospital room, looking tortured.

I waited with anticipation for Spinelli and Maxie's big showdown, so I was glued to the set when Spinelli followed a hobbling Maxie into her hospital room. "Finally," I whispered as Spinelli confronted Maxie with the truth. I wasn't disappointed. He demanded to know how she could live with herself, knowing that Dante and Lulu had been falling in love with a child that wasn't theirs. Good question, I thought, as I waited for Maxie's answer. She whimpered and sniveled but didn't provide one.

Next, Spinelli begged Maxie to help him understand how she could lie to him about the miracle that they had created during their "misguided, drunken tryst." Maxie promptly launched into the same litany of excuses that she had used on Ellie about how Maxie had been loath to disappoint Dante and Lulu or have them think less of her for miscarrying their baby, so she had decided to atone by giving Dante and Lulu her child.

And just like that, Spinelli's wrath and righteous indignation turned to sappy devotion as he began to babble about Maxie being his first love. Suddenly, Spinelli was urging Maxie to accept that she was as attached to their precious bundle of perfection and make things right by telling everyone the truth.

I realized in that moment that Spinelli never really loved Ellie. Not the way that he loved Maxie. Lulu was right; Ellie was good for Spinelli, but Maxie is the one he wants and will always want. Now that they have a child together, their relationship is cemented.

It's time for Ellie to move on, so I hope she finds someone wonderful, because she deserves it.

However, we still have Dante and Lulu to contend with because while Maxie and Spinelli will get to have their child, the two people who had wanted and loved the baby from the very beginning will get zip. Enter Britt and the mystery baby boy that she's carrying. I say mystery because we don't know if he's Dante and Lulu's son, Rocco, or if he's Britt's baby with a nameless sperm donor or someone closer to home.

Some readers have written in to suggest that perhaps Brad is the baby daddy, but I find that highly unlikely for a couple of reasons, starting with the fact that Brad is of Asian descent, whereas Patrick and Britt are not. It might have been a wee bit difficult to pass Brad's baby off as Patrick's son. Additionally, I can't imagine Brad donating his sperm without mentioning it at least once during his numerous conversations with Britt about said baby.

There was a moment, while Britt was flipping through the photo album of Nikolas and Emily, that I feared that Nikolas might be the father because Dr. Obrecht was in cahoots with Cesar, who in turn was one of Helena's minions, but then I discounted that because no way would Helena allow her grandchild to be used like that. She'd want the babe for herself. Plus, I'd think Nikolas would have noticed someone trying to steal a sperm sample from him.

I'm still sticking with my theory that the baby is Dante and Lulu's son. It's the only thing that makes sense, and it would ease their pain of losing little Georgie.

Another parent who will soon be claiming his daughter is Julian. He's chomping at the bit to do so, especially after holding Danny. That was such a sweet and tender moment when Julian held his grandson for the first time, cradled the little boy's head, and then kissed the top of it.

I know that Julian is supposed to be a bad guy, but there is something very likeable about him. Apparently, Alexis thinks so, too, because she practically glows whenever he's around. I'm not sure yet if I like Julian and Alexis as a couple, but I do like them as Sam's parents and Danny's grandparents.

Someone who won't get to be a grandparent, at least not to Dante and Lulu's baby, is Scott, because this week he decided to ask Laura for a divorce. Scott claims that he has seen the light; Laura will never love him as much as he loves her because Luke will always be first in her heart. Laura denied it, but Scott didn't believe her, so he walked away.

I'm not sure if this was a setup for Laura to fight for her man, Scott, when she returns from her yearly wellness evaluation in Paris, or if the writers plan to revisit Scott and Lucy while Laura disappears into the ether once again.

I like the idea of Laura trying to win Scott back, while working with Lucy to launch Deception. It could be quite interesting, especially with Kevin in the picture, because I'm certain that he's hiding something. Something big. Could he be connected to the Robin storyline?

Yes, I'm anxiously awaiting the arrival of Robin for many reasons. First, Patrick and Emma were stuck in limbo because the audience knew that Robin was out there, fighting to get back to them. Second, I hated the idea of Robin suffering, so I didn't like how they kept ending things with her.

I know that this development sucks for Sabrina fans because, barring unforeseen body-snatchers, it's likely that Patrick will end things with Sabrina to focus on his wife. However, there are plenty of guys around to help Sabrina pick up the pieces. There's also word that someone from her past is headed to Port Charles to stir up trouble, so I'm looking forward to seeing what's in store for the next phase of Sabrina's life.

A few things that tickled my fancy

Ellie explains to Franco that she doesn't have childrenFranco: (Scoffs) "Who'd want to bring another ginger into the world? It's rough on you guys."

Carly warns Franco that the hospital's security is on their way to collect him from the rooftopFranco: "What are you, the advance team?"

Britt talks to Nikolas about her impression of WyndemereBritt: "It's pretty hard to believe. I mean, it's totally Gothic. It's like something out of Jane Eyre. Oh, my God. Are you Batman?"Nikolas: "I do have a butler named Alfred."

Britt admits that her mother encouraged her to give Patrick the news about the baby at the Nurses BallPatrick: "Give the big news? No, no, you dropped it like an atomic bomb."

Diane reacts to A.J.'s decision to admit to killing ConnieDiane: "I did not leave [Manolo] alone in a hot tub just so I could come back and hear my client use the C-word." (Pauses) "Confess."

Diane turns to Michael to demonstrate how a client should behaveDiane: "Michael, what are the only words one should ever say to any member of law enforcement either before or after one has been read one's Miranda Rights?"Michael: "'I'm not saying anything without my attorney.'"Diane: "Why is that important?"Michael: "Because anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law, so the less you say the less there is for your attorney to get declared inadmissible." Diane: "Like you sprang from my own loins. I'm so proud of you."

Thank you for taking the time to read this week's column. I love to read your thoughts, too, so click here to send me an email, or scroll down the page to leave comments.

Until next time, dear readers, take care. Liz Masters